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| Our Campground, with views of the Superstition Mountains, is within 2 miles of the Lost Dutchman State Park. |
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| Hiking one of the trails towards the precipice behind Bob, we traverse through one of Arizona's most beautiful Sonoran Desert landscapes. The fact that it is the 8th of January (sorry to all our northern friends and relations) and we have to deal with sunscreen and dehydration is making us rethink our future wintering plans. Named after the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine, a famous gold mine legendary among the tales of the Old West, thousands of people continue to search this area for their own pot of gold. |
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| This area had been getting rain and snow while we were wiling away our time from Thanksgiving through the New Year near Tucson. Here the plants are blooming. This moderate hike, with an elevation gain of 500 feet, wasn't much of a challenge except for the need to monitor the trail map. There were things that looked like paths but turned out to be false trails (other hikers going off trail) or washes where rain water and snow melt have deposited sand, pebbles and rocks. |
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| After a stop for lunch (ours and puppies) we reached the halfway point. As usual, there are admonishments to hikers along the trail that damage to the native plants is done when leaving the designated pathways. Sadly, we found many people taking frolics and detours beyond the trail that really did not get a better vantage point. |
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Our home is in for Repairs, so we are heading to Tucson - 10 January 2019
El Conquistador Tucson Resort - 10-15 January 2019
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| This resort has a multistory hotel, ground-floor rooms and a huge selection of patio Casita suites, several dining areas, pool and adult-only pool. Desert and mountain views from any room, tennis courts, golf course and horse stables spanning 80 acres. The only thing it was missing was sufficient parking adjacent to the rooms when they had special events in the ballrooms. |
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| Various views |
Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, Arizona - 11 January 2019.
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| This was billed as a museum but it was also similar to a small zoo of local plants and animals. Built in 1952 with 85% of the experience out in the desert, 1200 native plant species, 230 native mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects and birds, including a hummingbird aviary. |
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| They have recreated a cave experience (natural enough that a few people had to turn back when the quarters began to get too close) without the native bats and bugs, no dripping ceilings and no troglobites. |
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| Native species of fauna included rattlesnake, mule deer (mislabeled as white tail deer), civet, prairie dog, javelina, black banded lizard, grey fox and bobcat. These are all safely housed behind glass, wires or fencing. However, there are plenty of signs warning of the occasional rattlesnake. |
The Raptor Free Flights is a bird of prey exhibition in the open desert. The birds are completely untethered (no jesses or bracelets) and fly so close to the audience that you can feel the brush of feathers as they fly by.
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| Gray Hawk |
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| In the wild, Harris's Hawks fly in family groups of three to seven birds. We watched as they flew in as a pack and at one point four of them dove into the brush after spying something moving. Family dynamics (this is a matriarchal society) sometimes change throughout the season and we saw the Alpha female assert her dominance by ousting the smaller males off the tops of the perches. When they are landing on a fist they curtail their wings into sharp V-shapes, drop their tails and extend their talons forward, slowing their descent until they grip the glove. It was amazing to see so many raptors working in unison. The upper middle photo shows one of the birds hunched over and dropping his wings to protect his morsel of meat from the other birds. |
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| Flowers along the walking path and hummingbirds in the aviary. Although there are fewer than two dozen species of hummers that venture into the US. very few are year-round residents. |
Catalina State Park, Apache Junction, Arizona - 14 January 2019
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| This park is adjacent to the Coronado National Forest on the western slopes of the Santa Catalina Mountains north of Tucson with an elevation of about 3000 feet. It varies dramatically between high ridges and low creek beds which can be very deceptive as safe walking paths until those high ridges get some rain. |
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| Several times during this hike we all got our feet wet while crossing a swollen creek bed with rushing runoff. Attempts had been made to provide some stones for safe footing but, alas, the Rangers must have been very long legged. It did not take more than the first attempt for my socks and shoes to slide off into the chilly stream. Of course, both dogs were extremely pleased to pad-foot around, and even sample the waters (not advisable). |
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